'^ 


^^^^H^^l^^^^^p ^^'^^^^^^^1 


SD 1 


HH^^G^^B 


3GB 1 


■fl^BuHH 


fej 


!^BB9BH^h 


m 


^^H^H^^^fS^^i 



Cvvw^-^ 



fO X Xfin..tt^r\,A ^~ YVwa • y c^co v/wux/f o Vvd?vV^ -^^^M| 







Class ^I)5Gc 

Book £^_ 

()op>iight}]° 

COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



THE LADY OF THE /^ 
GREEN SCARF 



An entertainment exercise for schools embodying the need 

for conserving our country's natural resources, 

suitable for weekly rhetoricals, class 

exercises and Arbor Day 



By 

MRS. VIRGINIA SHARPE-PATTERSON 

Member of American Forestry Association, Chairman Forestry Committee Indiana State 

Federation of Women's Clubs, Appointee of Governor Marshall for Indiana of 

Women's Rivers and Harbors Congress, Author of "Dickey Downy," 

a bird story. An Elemental Conservation Catechism, and 

the popular plays "Continental Kettledrum," 

and "Business Man's Jubilee" 



"Those meats ought to oe sugared over that are heahhful for children. 
Where their profit lieth there should be their recreation." — Montaigne. 



A. FLANAGAN COMPANY 
CHICAGO 



2.^ 



^^^<^. 



COPYRIGHT 1910 



A. FLANAGAN COMPANY 



(gCLD 2«)2l! 



DEDICATED TO 

HON. JOHN F. LACY OF IOWA 

WHOSE VALIANT WORK WHILE IN CONGRESS 

FOR THE PRESERVATION OF OUR BIRDS 

AND FORESTS ENTITLES HIM TO 

THE GRATITUDE OF ALL 

NATURE LOVERS 



"By inculcating in the children the precepts of economy in 
relation to natural resources the entire sentiment of the nation 
may be changed in a single generation and convert this people 
from the most wasteful and extravagant to the most prudent and 
conservative." — L. A, fVilliams. 







THE MILKMAID 



LIST OF CHARACTERS 

The Lady of the Green Scarf 

The Sequoia or Big Trees of California 

Mutilated Trees 

A Milkmaid 

A Tree Surgeon 

Three Country Life CoxMmissioners 

Ten Sylvan Soldiers 

A City Tree 

The Tree Alphabet 

A Group of Countries— Japan, Egypt, Brazil and Ice- 
land. 

Mrs. Treelover 

Bo-Peep 

An Indian 

The Bird Biography. 



SUGGESTIONS 

Characters. The Lady of the Green Scarf is the central figure 
of the entertainment. 

Groups of boys and girls (six or more in each) represent the 
Sequoia and the Mutilated Trees. The First Sequoia may be 
represented by a boy or a girl. The pupils representing the Muti- 
lated Trees should wear bandages on their heads and arms and 
about their bodies. 

The Ten Sylvan Soldiers are introduced for the purpose of 
including the very smallest pupils and giving them individual 
interest in trees. If each soldier carries a small shovel, pretending 
to dig a hole for his tree, it will give more action. 

Costumes. Each tree should wear a green paper cap. The 
soldiers may have a green rosette and a streamer on the breast, 
or green epaulets. Bo-Peep may carry a shepherd's crook orna- 
mented with a green streamer. She also may carry an empty 
bird's nest if desired. The Tree Alphabet may carry sprigs of 
evergreen or wear green badges or green bands on their hats. 
The Milkmaid may carry a milking-stool and a pail and wear a 
white apron and a white sunbonnet or cap. If Japan, Brazil, etc., 
will dress in the costumes of the respective countries it will add 
much to a picturesque setting. For the Sequoia a yellow costume 
would be appropriate, as representing California, the land of the 
setting sun. Old Mrs. Treelover wears spectacles, a white cap, 
and a shoulder shawl. All these costumes may be elaborated to 
suit the taste, but elaboration is not necessary to the success of the 
program. The Lady with the Green Scarf may be gowned in 
green if so desired, but wears a floating scarf of green no matter 
what the color of the dress may be. 

Should it not be convenient to have all the features of this 
conservation exercise, any feature may be omitted without im- 
pairing the completeness of the entertainment. If the exercise 
be held on Arbor Day it will open with the song "We Sing of 
Trees and Skies so Blue." 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

(Pupils representing trees and special parts — Milkmaid, Bo- 
Peep, Tree Surgeon and Indian — ranged on one side. On the 
other, Country Life Commissioners, Sylvan Soldiers, Tree 
Alphabet, Sequoia, Group of Countries, pupils who recite 
poems, pupils taking minor parts in colloquies, and rest of school 
who take part in marches and songs. Lady of the Green Scarf 
in center.) 

Entire School (singing to tune of "Maryland, My Mary- 
land"). 

We sing of trees and skies so blue, 

Arbor Day, dear Arbor Day. 

The youthful heart belongs to you, 

Arbor Day, dear Arbor Day. 

When happy birds are on the wing, 
Thoughts bright with hope to us you bring — 
The joy of every living thing, 
Arbor Day, dear Arbor Day. 

We pledge our service to the State, 

This Arbor Day, dear Arbor Day; 
To save our streams and -forests great. 

Arbor Day, dear Arbor Day. 

Where sunbeams search the trees to thrill. 
Where green shores stretch to meet the rill, 
Your sweet voice calls from every hill, 
Arbor Day, dear Arbor Day. 

The Lady of the Green Scarf. The trees, the rivers, the 
minerals, the soil and the birds of America ! — to-day we pay loving 
testimony to the blessings they bring into our lives and dedicate 
ourselves to their preservation. (Turns to the Sequoia.) Se- 
quoia, most wonderful of American trees, will you tell us your 
history ? 

First Sequoia (coming farward). I speak for the Sequoia or 
Big Trees of California. My father was a forest king of the 
great valley. My mother was a lofty green-robed queen, living 

7 



8 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

among courtiers as grand and stately as she was herself. The 
Sequoia were born in that faraway past of which no living man 
knows — ^born, too, under a lucky star, so it seemed as the ages 
moved slowly onward, for other forest species gave up their 
lives and were replaced by new growths again and again, but the 
giant Sequoia appeared to wear the crown of eternity on their 
proud brows. For centuries they absorbed the splendors of the 
upper air ; for centuries the golden bees hummed lullabies in their 
lofty branches. All lovely things and strong forces in nature paid 
them gracious tribute. While their feet were in shadow, their 
tops waved in the first beams of morning. The great, calm 
silences, the dews, the joyous sunshine, gladly contributed to 
their growth. The pale white moon shone close to them — was 
theirs — and the dashing rains that beat against their turgid bark 
gave them strength. Over the onslaughts of hurricanes they 
were victors. And there they reigned in majesty and peace 
through three thousand years. Then their star was dimmed, for 
then came Man, bearing the axe and the torch, tokens of prog- 
ress and civilization, and vast numbers of this royal family, 
covering countless acres, were destroyed, wantonly burned or 
left half-destroyed on the ground. To-day only a few members 
of that grand company of Sequoia survive. Fortunately these 
few have been recently purchased by the Government of the 
United Slates, so that future generations may have them as a 
reminder of America's early forest splendor. There are just 
ninety-three Big Trees in the North Grove of California, one 
thousand three hundred and eighty in the South Grove. They 
are the oldest living things in the world to-day. (Retires.) 

(The Lady of the Green Scarf turns to Mutilated Trees.) 

Lady. Why ! what accident has happened to you ? Have you 
been in an earthquake or a collision? You seem to have been 
injured in some way. 

(Fotir Trees come fonvard.) 

First Tree. Yes, lady, we have been injured, for we are the 
victims of the Tree Butcher, the ignorant Tree Trimmer, the man 
who no sooner sees a handsome tree than he wishes to cut out 
its top and haggle its limbs and ruin all its symmetry and beauty. 



THE LADY OF THE GREEX SCARF 9 

You know the Tree Butchers. There are plenty of them every- 
where. 

Second Tree. Look, lady, at this mutilated bough of mine. 
Isn't it a shame to allow noble trees to be disfigured? 

Third Tree. We shudder when we see the Tree Butcher 
coming with his saw and clipping shears. We know full well 
how he'll cut and hack and splinter us all to pieces, leaving jagged 
ends where the rain can soak in and hasten the decay of the wood. 

Fourth Tree. Lady, we can't imagine why the Tree Butcher 
is allowed to disfigure trees and shorten their lives. It takes a 
long, long time for a tree to grow, but in only a few minutes it 
may be ruined forever. Don't human beings ever think of the 
close relation of tree life to human life? Don't they know that 
damage done to the trees means damage done to themselves? 
Have they no sentiment? Don't they care for the appearance of 
their homes and grounds and the streets of their towns, that owe 
so much of their beauty to the trees ? 

Lady. Yes, they are at last beginning to think of these 
things. They are seeing that unless the shade trees are pro- 
tected and nourished, soon our lovely country will lose its attract- 
iveness. In some states they have passed laws to regulate tree- 
trimming so that the trees may grow as nature intended they 
should. (Addressing School.) The children of America can 
help in this work of tree-protection by realizing that trees are 
objects to be prized among our choicest possessions and cherish- 
ing them not only for their beauty, but for their importance to 
the health and well-being of man. Will you do this ? 

School. We will. (Mutilated Trees retire.) 

Lady. Here comes a pretty milkmaid. 

(Milkmaid and Boy come fonvord. Refrain by School.) 

Boy. Where are you going, my pretty maid? 

Milkmaid, I'm going a-milking, sir. 

School. She said. — "I'm going a-milking, sir," she said. 

Boy. And where are your cows, my pretty maid? 

Milkmaid. Out in the wood-pasture, sir. 

School. She said. — "Out in the wood-pasture, sir," she said. 



10 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

Boy. Do your cows like trees, my pretty maid? 

Milkmaid. When the sun shines hot they Hke them. 

School. She said. — "When the sun shines hot they hke 
them," she said. 

Boy. To be kind to farm animals, my pretty maid — 

Milkmaid. What should I do for them, sir? 

School. She said. — "What should I do for them, sir?" she 
said. 

Boy. Yes, what would you do for them, pretty maid? 

Milkmaid. I'd plant trees to shelter them, sir. 

School. She said. — "I'd plant trees to shelter them, sir,'* 
she said. (Milkmaid and Boy retire.) 

(Tree Surgeon and Girl come forward.) 

Girl. Are you a friend of the trees ? 

Surgeon. Indeed I am ; I am a tree surgeon. 

Girl. A tree doctor, do you mean? I've never before heard 
of your profession. 

Surgeon. No, it is not so common as other professions, but 
it is more important than many. Sixty or seventy years ago filling 
teeth was unusual. When a tooth began to ache it was ruthlessly 
pulled out, leaving a big hole and sunken jaws ; no effort was 
made to keep it. Nothing was done to help it serve out its term, 
of usefulness and natural beauty. Just so it has been with the 
trees : until recently nobody thought of filling their cavities and 
prolonging their lives. 

Girl. What causes the cavities in trees? 

Surgeon. Oh, there are a great many causes, but the most 
common are poor trimming by some botchy fellow who thinks 
he knows how, but doesn't ; bruising of the bark by the spurs of 
the linemen, and the gnawing of horses. Splitting of weak 
crotches will make cavities, too. The usual way is to let the 
decay go on and on, till finally the tree is so weakened that it 
breaks to pieces in some heavy storm, or possibly it may linger 
on for years, with a long, black hole in its trunk — an unsightly 
object and a constant reproach to its careless, ignorant owner. 

Girl. How does the tree surgeon remedy this? What does 
he do? 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF H 

Surgeon. Well, he goes at the tree very much as the dentist 
goes at the decayed tooth. First of all, the dead and decaying 
part is carefully cut out, back to good healthy wood. You know 
how particular the dentist is to dry out all moisture in the cavity 
before filling the tooth? We do the same thing by draining the 
walls of the cavity. Then the hole is studded with nails driven 
in so as to hold the filling firmly against the sides. When the tree 
is particularly weak steel braces are put in, then the cement filling 
is laid on and tamped into place and lastly it is shaped up to 
preserve the contour, and there you have a tree almost as good 
as new. 

Girl. But the bark will not grow over the cement, will it ? 

Surgeon, Certainly it will. The growth of a tree is not from 
the inside, as so many people suppose. The entire growth takes 
place close under the bark and if the cement is properly put in, 
so that it is entirely inside the growing tissue, the bark will heal 
over and in time no trace of the wound will be seen. I tell you, it's 
wonderful what a tree can do if you give it a chance. 

Girl. The man who thought out such a way of saving dis- 
eased trees is certainly a genius and deserves the gratitude of 
the whole country. 

Surgeon. The tree surgeon has to remedy many other things. 
In trimming a tree limb he'd no more leave a stub than he'd fly 
to the moon. He knows that all cuts should be made flush with 
the limb or trunk from which the branch has been taken. He 
understands the circulation of the tree and knows that if the 
circulation is destroyed in that part the bark dies back till the 
stub decays, leaving a hole. Another hard job for the tree surgeon 
is attending to the splitting crotches. The beech, the linden, the 
soft maples, and the elm are more liable to splitting crotches 
than the other varieties. The tree surgeon must always be on 
the lookout for causes afifecting the health of trees. Sometimes 
gas escapes from some pipe into the ground near the tree and in 
such a case you might as well say good-by to your tree, for its 
death is certain unless the leak is stopped. All the poisoned soil 
must be taken out and its place filled with rich, healthy earth. 
(Retires. ) 



12 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

Girl. Tree surgery is, indeed, a noble profession and should 
rank with the other sciences that deal with the betterment of life 
in whatever form. 

(Country Life Commissioners approach.) 

Girl (addressing them). Messrs. Farm Commissioners, I 
hear you were sent out by President Roosevelt to see how life 
on the farms .might be made better and pleasanter and in 
various ways to help the people who live in the country. But, 
Messrs. Commissioners, please don't forget to tell the farmers to 
love the birds and not to plow so close to the fence line that the 
pretty green undergrowth has no chance to live. They plow so 
much that they drain the water all off, and that is bad for the 
crops. Tell them to leave a little space for the tangled grasses 
to grow, and shooting herbs and mints and wild flowers where 
the quail may hide. The farmers will lose nothing by making 
friends of the birds. They will gain by having fewer bugs and 
insects to blight their crops. And, oh! Messrs. Commissioners, 
above all things, please teach the Southern farmers to spare our 
dear robin redbreasts! Do they know how in the North we 
welcome that cheerful dooryard friend with his early spring song? 
But thousands of robins will never come back to us since the 
Southern farmer has taken to eating them. Just think of cooking 
and eating our darling robin redbreast ! And will you not teach 
country people everywhere to love trees more? to embellish their 
home grounds with ornamental shr 'e trees? to take pride in 
owning a grove? Tell them to plant Christmas trees on their 
own lands, so that the beautiful mountains will not be stripped of 
their evergreens. If they will do these things, Messrs. Farm 
Commissioners, your problem of uplifting the farmer and his 
family is partly solved, for a love and appreciation of the inti- 
mate things in Nature is the greatest uplifting influence in life. 
(Girl and Commissioners retire.) 

(Ten Sylvan Soldiers come fonvard.) 
Lady. Welcome to our little Sylvan Soldiers ! 
(Ten boys zvalk around in single tile, singing or reciting.) 
Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; four 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 13 

sylvan, five sylvan, six sylvan soldiers ; seven sylvan, eight sylvan, 
nine sylvan soldiers ; ten sylvan soldier boys ! (Range in line, 
facing front.) 

Tenth Sold. Ten sylvan soldiers standing in a line ; 

One plants a beech-tree and then there are 
nine. (Drops out of line.) 

(Nine boys zvalk around, singing or reciting.) 

Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; four 
sylvan, five sylvan, six sylvan soldiers ; seven sylvan, eight sylvan, 
nine sylvan soldiers ; nine sylvan soldier boys. (Range iii line, 
as before.) 

Ninth Sold. Nine sylvan soldiers just a moment late; 

One plants a slippery-elm and then there are 
eight. (Drops out of line.) 

(Eight boys zvalk around, singing or reciting.) 

Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; four 
sylvan, five sylvan, six sylvan soldiers ; seven sylvan, eight sylvan, 
eight sylvan soldiers ; eight sylvan soldier boys ! (Range in line, 
as before.) 

Eighth Sold. Eight sylvan soldiers watch the rain from 
heaven ; 
One plants a mountain-ash and then there 
are seven. (Drops out of line.) 

(Seven boys zvalk around.) 
Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan', three sylvan soldiers : four 
sylvan, five sylvan, six sylvan soldiers ; seven s'}lvan, seven sylvan, 
seven sylvan soldiers; seven sylvan soldier bovs ! (Range in 
line.) 

Seventh Sold. Seven sylvan soldiers whose names cannot 
mix ; 
One plants a cedar-tree and then there are 
six. (Drops out of line.) 

(Six boys zvalk around.) 
Soldiers. One sylvan, two svlvan, three sylvan soldiers ; four 
sylvan, five sylvan, six sylvan soldiers ; six svlvan, six sylvan, six 
sylvan soldiers ; six sylvan soldier boys ! (Range in line.) 
Sixth Sold. Six sylvan soldiers very much alive ; 

One plants a sassafras and then there are five. 

(Drops out.) 
(Five boys zvalk around.) 

Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; four 



14 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

sylvan, five sylvan, five sylvan soldiers ; five sylvan, five sylvan, 
five sylvan soldiers ; five sylvan soldier boys. (Range in line.) 
Fifth Sold. Five sylvan soldiers skipping on the shore ; 
One plants a mulberry, then there are four. 

(Drops out.) 

(Four boys umlk around.) 

Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; four 

sylvan, four sylvan, four sylvan soldiers ; four sylvan, four sylvan. 

four sylvan soldiers ; four sylvan soldier boys. (Range in line.) 

Fourth Sold. Four sylvan soldiers roaming gay and free, 

One plants a weeping-birch and then there 

are three. (Drops out.) 

(Three boys 2valk around.) 

Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; three 
sylvan, three sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; three sylvan, three 
sylvan, three sylvan soldiers ; three sylvan soldier boys. (Range 
in line.) 

Third Sold. Three sylvan soldiers puzzled what to do : 

One plants a locust-tree and then there are 
two. (Drops out.) 

(Two boys walk arouna.) 

Soldiers. One sylvan, two sylvan, two sylvan soldiers ; two 
sylvan, two sylvan, two sylvan soldiers ; two sylvan, two sylvan, 
two sylvan soldiers; two sylvan soldier boys! (Face front.) 
Second Sold. Two sylvan soldiers marching in the sun, 

One plants a cherry-tree and then there is 
one. (Drops out.) 

(Remaining boy walks around.) 
Soldier. Ten sylvan, nine sylvan, eight sylvan soldiers ; 
seven sylvan, six sylvan, five sylvan soldiers ; four sylvan, three 
sylvan, two sylvan soldiers ; one sylvan soldier boy ! (Halts.) 
One sylvan soldier left all alone. 
He makes his final bow and then there is none. 

(Bows and retires.) 

Lady. How nice this planting wall be for the birds! Birds 
are fond of the tree seeds and the big clusters of berries of the 
mountain-ash, and they are perfectly happy when they find a 
mulberry-tree. I know a man who plants mulberries purposely 
for them, to keep them from troubling his orchard. The way to 
encourage the birds is to plant trees whose seeds furnish them 
food. The Audubon Societies are doing a great work in teaching 




THE SYLVAN SOLDIERS 



16 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

people the importance of protecting bird-life and the necessity of 
having trees to shelter them. 

(A Pupil comes forward.) 
Pupil (to School). 

Have you heard the throb of the forest heart? 
The crash as the shivering timbers part 
And a life goes out — a Forest King 
Reels to his fate where the axe strokes ring. 

Have you seen the monarch of centuries past 
Throw down his crown and give over at last 
From the struggle of years to bring to its height 
The shaft reaching up to the blue and the light ? 

* * * 

There are deserts to-day where a while ago 
The rain-spirit brooded and wild buds could blow. 
Where the arms of the forests were held to the sky 
As a pledge that the water never should dry, 
But the axe of invasion swung in with its threat ; 
The forest heart reeked when the axe-blade was set, 
And the earth in revolt gave the shafts of her dead, 
But the waters withdrew ! 

Shall America, garden of earth, cast away 
The gifts of the centuries felled in a day, 
Till she stands in her poverty branded servile 
A target for cycles of time to revile?* (Retires.) 

(City Tree approaches Lady with Green Scarf.) 
Lady. Here's a city tree! Let us listen to what it has to 
tell us. 

City Tree. Yes, I'm a city shade tree that must spend all 
its days in an atmosphere of grime and dust, surrounded by tall 
buildings that shut out the air and the sunlight. We city trees 
have a struggle for life. Hard stone pavements are built over 
our roots that prevent the rain and dews from sinking in where 
they are so much needed, and as for our leaves, through which 
we breathe, — oh, dear ! how choked and clogged they get with the 
thick black smoke that pours out from big chimneys and rail- 
road trains and factories ! Some days we are almost sufifocated 
with the dust and dirt flying all about us; we grow ashamed of 
our looks and quite envy the trees that live in the nice clean 



*By George Klingle. Used by permission of the Editor of Fot-cs/.i-y and lyi-rsation. 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 17 

country. We don't have half a chance to rest and be quiet. 
People don't seem to know that trees need the repose of darkness 
as well as sunlight to keep them thrifty and handsome; in the 
city no sooner does the sun set than a piercing white light is 
suddenly turned on and all night through we're in its blazing 
glare. And, as though that were not sufficient to keep us dejected, 
the linemen run through our beautiful tops their electric wires, 
which sap our lives. Then there are the bugs and the worms 
that bother us; before the birds were killed off they used to 
eat up the insects that infest trees, but of late years we've been 
overrun with all sorts of horrid beetles that work under the 
bark, to say nothing of fuzzy caterpillars that eat up our foliage. 
Besides all this, the thoughtless boy scrapes our wood with his 
knife and cuts gashes in us which often kill us. Grown people, 
too, are our enemies, for they are constantly breaking off twigs 
from our overhanging limbs that are within their reach as they 
walk along the street, and this causes us to look ragged and ugly. 
To tell the truth, I'm surprised that city trees have the courage 
to grow at all. 'Tis such a struggle for them ! But oh ! 'tis such 
a joy to live ! 'Tis such a joy to bring health and pleasure and 
the sight of something green and beautiful into the lives of people 
who otherwise might never see a tree ! As you can imagine, we 
are in a flutter of delight in the spring, when we listen for the 
wing-beats of the birds that are on their way to make their homes 
in our boughs. So, in spite of discouragements and bad treat- 
ment, we just keep on trying to live and be a blessing to the 
people who tread the hot city pavements. 

Lady. That's a noble lesson of persistence and courage that 
we all may learn from a tree. The struggles of a city tree are 
indeed worthy of all praise. 

(Sylvan Soldiers march forward and range in line.) 
Lady. Welcome to our big Sylvan Soldiers ! 
Soldiers (singing to tune of "Onward, Christian Soldiers"). 

We are sylvan soldiers 

Marching through the land; 
Friends to stream and forest, 

We now take our stand 



18 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

To protect the woodlands 

Grown on mountain soil, 
There to hold the rain to 

Bless the farmer's toil. 

(ChoruSj sung marching.) 

We are sylvan soldiers 

Marching through the land ; 
Friends to stream and forest. 

We now take our stand. 

(Soldiers range in line.) 

Torrents pouring downward, 

Ruin in their track ! 
No trees left to hold the 

Mighty waters back. 
All the surface riches 

Washed into the sea. 
Of the nation's downfall 

This the certain key. 

(Chorus, sung marching.) 

We are sylvan soldiers 

Marching through the land : 
Friends to stream and forest. 

We now take our stand. 

(Soldiers range in line.) 

Purling stream and river 

Will be known no more 
If they're doomed to wander 

By a treeless shore. 
Then for speedy action 

To replace the tree, 
To preserve the forests. 

This our work must be. 

(Chants, sung marching.) 

We are sylvan soldiers 

Marching through the land; 
Friends to stream and forest. 

We now take our stand. 

(March back to place.) 

Lady. Who knows the Tree Alphabet? It will be a pleasure 
for every one to learn it. It tells of a great variety of trees. 



THE LADY OF THE GREExM SCARF 19 

(Twenty-six pupils forming Tree Alphabet come forward.) 
Alphabet (each of the pupils reciting in turn the lines begin- 
ning with his letter). 

A is the ash, a most beautiful tree, 

Whose many good uses mark it first in degree. 

B is the bass-wod^, whose tassels, in June, 

Lure yellow bees through the hot summer's noon. 

C is catalpa, whose leaf, big and broad, 

Half conceals the long and pendulous pod. 

D is the dogwood, with rosettes of white, 
Turning their edges of pink to the light. 

E is the arching elm — foliage like lace. 

To every landscape it lends charm and grace. 

F is the fir-tree that's green all the year. 

Much used at Christmastide, bringing good cheer. 

G is the gingko, brought here from Japan. 
To grow it is difficult ; see if you can. 

H is the hawthorn with blossoms milk-white, 
A theme for the poets, in which they delight. 

I is for ilex, well known as holly ; 

Trimmed with its berries things appear jolly. 

J is the juniper, fragrant within ; 

Its fruit is much used for flavoring gin. 

K is the kelp that grows in the ocean. 
Fed by the salt brine, ever in motion. 

L is the larch, whose strength is its power ; 
On it's rebuilt the great Campanile tower. 

M is the maple, most lovely of all. 

Gay in its crimson robe all through the fall. 

N is negundo that bears greenish blooms ; 
Name it box-elder of Dame Nature's looms. 



20 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

O is the oak, prized by Druids of old. 

Through hallowed groves their pagan chants rolled. 

P is the lofty pine, ever man's friend ; 
In it great beauty and usefulness blend. 

Q is the quaking-asp, tossing its leaves, 

Rustling and white as the wind through it weaves. 

R is the redwood, the King of the West. 
In grandeur and age above all the rest. 

S is the mottled-bark, tall sycamore, 

Lining the Wabash along its green shore. 

T is the tamarisk, fringed in green mist. 
The daintiest growth the sun ever kissed. 

U is the upas tree, in league with death, 
Secreting poison in its deadly breath. 

V is valerian with odor strong; 

Its roots, a medicine, to drugs belong. 

W is the willow that sends out long shoots. 
Absorbing all moisture far from its roots. 

X is xanthoxylum with yellow wood. 
Prickly and pungent, for medicine good. 

V is the yew-tree that lives to great age ; 
Often 'tis mentioned on history's page. 

Z is the zante-wood, with berries small. 

Growing on Grecian isles near the sea-wall. 

(A Pupil comes forward.) 

Pupil (to School). 

Strange indeed were the sounds I heard, 
One day on the side of the mountain: 
Hushed was the stream and silent the bird, 
The restless wind seemed to hold its breath. 
And all things there were still as death, 
Save the hoarse-voiced god of the mountain. 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 21 

''Where are my beautiful trees ?" he cried, 
"That grew on the side of the mountain ? 

The stately pines which were once my pride ; 
My shadowy, droop-limbed junipers 
And my dewy, softly whispering firs, 
'Mid their emerald glooms on the mountain? 

"They all are ravished away," he said, 

"And torn from the arms of the mountain — 
Away from the haunts of cooling shade. 

From the cloisters green which flourished there — 

My lodging for many a joyous year 

On the side of the pleasant mountain. 

"Man has let in the passionate sun 

To suck the life-blood of the mountain 
And drink up its fountains one by one; 

And out of immortal freshness made 

A thing of barter and sold in trade 

The sons of the mother-mountain. 

"Because of this 
The palpitant streams shall all go dry 

Henceforth on the side of the mountain, 
And the verdant plains as a desert lie. 
Till man plants again the forestfold, 
And restores to me my kingdom old, 
As in former davs on the mountain."* 

(Retires.) 

Lady. Let me introduce A Group of Countries. 
(Japan comes forward.) 

Japan. This honorable company must ever associate cherry 
blossoms with my lovely country of Japan. Though the inhabit- 
ants excel in the arts, in delicate decorations and silver traceries 
of porcelains, metals and silken fabrics, and have given the world 
paper more exquisite in quality and coloring than any ever made 
before, this honorable company must know that our outdoor 
attractions are greater by far. Though you have cedars in your 
honorable country of United States I wish you might see our 
forests of cedars and pines and view their varied bark of red 
and black. They make our forests very picturesque. We also 
have many, many mulberry trees in my country, upon which the 

♦Millard Hodson. Used by permission of the Editor of Forestry and Irrigation. 



22 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

silkworm feeds. The aromatic camphor tree with its fruit of gum 
is much prized, for it helps to make wealth for my nation, but I 
learn that you are introducing camphor trees into your honorable 
land of United States and that will help to increase your wealth. 
Fortunate America, where everything seems to adapt itself to the 
needs of its people ! 

(Egypt steps to the side of Japan.) 
Egypt. I come from Egypt, that ancient land of mystery 
whose secrets have never yet been told. There flows the Nile, 
the ancient river on whose ebb and flow depends the food 
supply of millions. Egypt has no forests. The mighty pyramids 
look down on sand ; except in Lower Egypt we rarely see a grove 
of trees. But we have the palms, which have been termed the 
princes of the vegetable kingdom. Never can the palm — tall, 
graceful, and stately — be confounded with any other tree. In its 
elegance of form and its noble crown of leaves it is equally dis- 
tinctive. It figures in the pages of ancient history and in the 
annals of the Church it holds a leading place. From one of its 
numerous varieties we get cocoanuts and another furnishes us 
with toothsome dates. From its fiber we make rope. The siren 
Cleopatra fanned herself with its mammoth leaf, just as we fan 
ourselves to-day. Its homelier uses are found in the starch, sugar, 
oil, and wax that are its products. Its rosy wine is full of pleasant 
flavors. In tropical America are found some of its progenitors 
that bathe themselves in the sunlight of your southern skies and 
so admired are they in your cold northern climate that small 
specimens in pots are kept by artificial heat for home decoration. 
The United States holds much wealth, but Egypt literally "holds 
the palm." 

(Brazil joins Egypt and Japan.) 

Brazil. Though my country is noted for its luxuriant growth 
of trees and foliage, splendid in coloring, we have one tree more 
wonderful than all others, that plays an important part in the 
everyday life of the American people. As long ago as the second 
voyage of Columbus one of the explorers noticed that the natives 
played with balls that bounced better than the balls used in Spain 
and he found they were made from the gum of a tree. This gum 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 23 

the Spaniards learned to smear over their cloaks to make them 
waterproof. But the discovery did not travel fast. It was three 
hundred years later that people in the United States began to 
wear shoes made from the milky juice of this extraordinary tree. 
It seems all right to tap a tree to get sugar water, but to tap it 
for stuff out of which to make shoes seems truly funny, doesn't 
it? My grandmother says that in the United States these shoes 
went by the name of "gum-elastics" and often it was shortened 
to "gums." "Be sure to wear your gums, because it is raining," 
people would say to the children. These gum-shoes were very 
clumsy affairs and were so thick that a pair would last several 
seasons. If a child outgrew his they were handed down to the 
younger brother or sister, for the gums were expensive. They 
were made high, to the ankles, and had eyelets by means of which 
they were laced up with strings. When they were new and shiny 
the children often wore them right next to the stockings, and in 
consequence suffered from sore feet. It has gone out of fashion 
to call these shoes "gums." To-day they are called "rubbers" 
and, instead of lasting several years so that little sister can wear 
them when she gets bigger, they are so light and thin that one 
is often compelled to buy two pairs in a winter. A rubber tree 
four feet through, yields twenty gallons of sap, making forty 
pounds of India rubber. To-day the product of the caoutchouc, 
or india-rubber tree, is as common as wood or iron. Many 
million dollars' worth of it was brought into the United States 
this year. The whole tropical world is now entering into the 
cultivation of rubber on an immense scale and ninety-nine per 
cent, of the rubber of commerce has been procured by the most 
wasteful and destructive methods. The rubber-gatherer has been 
a foe to South America and the great A.frican continent. He has 
exterminated forests and species in his relentless efforts to secure 
enormous returns without investing capital. The demand for 
rubber must be supplied by planting new forests. Up to Januar>% 
1908, four hundred thousand rubber trees had been planted by 
the government in Hawaii. Every day finds a new use for this 
important product. We have rubber hose and bands and stoppers. 
Our carriages run on rubber tires and the wheels of our auto- 
mobiles are fat cushions of it. We use rubber hotwater bags 



24 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

when we are chilly, rubber ice bags when we are feverish. But 
who can tell of them all? When you go home you will find it 
interesting to attempt to write a list of the thousand and one 
articles for which the gum of the rubber tree is used. And if you 
make any mistake you can rub it out with the rubber in the end 
of your pencil. See? 

(Iceland joins the others.) 

Iceland. If you would leave the United States and go home 
with me to my country we would travel northward toward the 
region of everlasting snows and as you proceeded on your journey 
you would soon notice that the land was changing before you, that 
the flowers were fewer, and fewer the trees. After a while the 
sun would seem sick and weak, with no warmth in its slanting 
beams ; the air would be keener and more penetrating and you 
would draw your furs closer and closer about you. You would 
speed on into the region of whiteness and when you looked for 
the trees you would find them still smaller and the cold would be 
colder and the steam of your breath would no longer be steam, but 
would turn to frost and cut your face. With every mile you 
traveled you would be leaving farther behind you the beautiful 
trees of America that you do not love half enough. And finally, 
by sledge and ship, through snows and storm, we should reach 
my country, my Iceland home, with its background of ice moun- 
tains, and there you would notice the absence of colors, and the 
music of leaves high up in the air would not reach your ears. 
Instead of your sturdy oaks and noble elms you would find only 
dwarf birches, so stunted and small that you would call them 
mere bushes. Never can any Iceland child play under the trees 
as you do, for these bushes are scarcely as tall as a man. O happy 
children of America! how beautiful it is to have trees to love! 
Fortunate are you to live in a land where forests will grow. 
Happy are you if you prize them as treasures to be protected. 
(The Countries retire.) 

(Mrs. Treelover conies forward.) 

Mrs. Treelover. When I hear you folks tellin' about the 
trees and the birds I just feel as if I'd like to join in. 

Lady of the Green Scarf. I'm sure we shall all be glad to 
have you with us. 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 25 

Mrs. Treelover. Thank you, ma'am. Ever since I came in 
I've been admirin' that green scarf of yours and wishin' I had one. 
But, first of all, let me say that I think it's fine to have an Arbor 
Day [or Conservation Day] in the schools ! Wish we'd had 'em 
when I was young, so that children might have been taught to 
think more of the trees and to know what a precious possession 
they are. But nobody explained such things in those days ; there 
didn't seem to be any need of it. It was just naturally taken for 
granted that the forests and the birds would always be here ; you 
see we had so many we didn't appreciate 'em. Our folks moved 
about from one place to another a good bit and every new home 
we got I made it a rule to plant some trees. 

Lady. That was splendid. Did you ever keep an account of 
the number you planted? 

Mrs. Treelover. La! bless you, no! I couldn't begin to 
remember. I just planted and planted— sometimes seeds, some- 
times roots and saplin's. I just loved to see the pretty green 
things growin'. Often, just as they'd be gettin' a good start and 
lookin' thrifty and nice, ofT our folks would move somewheres 
else and I'd have to do it all over again in some new home. At 
first I'd feel awfully bad about leavin' 'em and I'd say, "What's 
the use of plantin' when I don't get to stay to enjoy 'em?" and 
then my mother, she'd say, "Somebody else will enjoy, 'em if you 
don't; it's a good way to help the world. So, daughter, you 
just keep on plantin' trees and makin' desolate places beautiful." 
r followed her advice and have been a-followin' it ever since, for 
I loved trees so well that I wanted everybody else to have 'em, 
so I'd plant 'em in folkses' yards when they'd let me. Not long 
ago I went to visit in a little town where I used to live and I 
called on one of our old neighbors. Presently she asked me if I 
didn't want to go out and look at her yard. I was a little sur- 
prised, for I remembered when she didn't use to care a fig about 
havin' things growin' in her yard. But out we went and there, at 
the back end of her lot, was a half dozen trees loaded with the 
loveliest peaches. "What thrifty peach trees!" says I. "This is 
their third year for bearin','' says she proudly, "and I just want 
to tell you that I never took such genuwine comfort as I've done 



26 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

with these trees of yours." "Of mine!" says I. "Why do you 
call 'em my trees ?" says I. "Because you planted 'em," says she. 
And — bless you ! — I'd forgot all about the circumstance till she 
recalled that one day I brought over some seedlin's that had been 
crowdin' up in my garden and had set 'em out in her back yard 
with my own hands. I'd never thought of it since ; but wasn't it 
pleasant that here, years afterward, here I was a-eatin' of the 
fruit they bore !" 

Lady. Indeed, it was delightful. You felt well repaid. 

Mrs, Treelover. And the beauty of it was that just watchin' 
those peach trees grow that woman got so fond of trees that 
she'd bought a number of other kinds and now she's learned to get 
a power of enjoyment out of her garden. Occasionally when I'm 
out in the woods in the fall I take along a few walnuts and bury 
them here and there. Some of 'em are good-sized trees by this 
time and perhaps lots of boys have been made happy by gatherin' 
the nuts. I save all my choice peach stones, too, and often when 
I find a good sheltered place in the woods I drop 'em in. Ash- 
leafed maples are easy to grow and transplant ; some of 'em came 
up in my yard once; their seed wings were carried by the wind 
from a big tree on another street. I took a few of 'em to some 
people who had bare, forbiddin'-lookin' yards and in two or three 
seasons you wouldn't have known it was the same spot. I often 
wonder if I am a relative of Johnny Appleseed. The books tell 
how he went through the country with a bag of seed, a-plantin' 
as he traveled along; and in after years, all through the parts of 
Ohio and Indiana he traveled through, the land was beautified 
by apple blossoms and fruit for the early pioneers to enjoy. 

Lady. Yes, Johnny Chapman, or Johnny Appleseed, as he 
was termed, did a very beautiful act for humanity when he was 
scattering those seeds through the wild countryside. He was a 
true benefactor, just as you are. (To the School.) If it be true, 
as St. Pierre the French writer says, that "he who makes the earth 
produce one grain more of wheat does mankind a greater service 
than he who writes a book," then this dear old lady through her 
love for trees has blessed many, many lives. (Mrs. Treelover 
retires.) 




BO-PEEP 



28 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

(Bo-Peep comes forward.) 
Lady. And who is this tripping maiden? 
Bo-Peep. 

I'm little Bo-Peep and I lost my sheep 

And I didn't know where to find 'em, 
For I feared they'd stray by a lonely way 

With nobody there to mind 'em ; 
So along I ran till I came to a place 

Where grew a sapling cedar, 
And there on a twig swung an empty nest 

Like the one described in our Reader. 
This nest is fashioned of many queer things 

Wove firm to keep out the weather — 
Of sticks and hair and gay woolen strings. 

So cutely plaited together. 

I remembered then some bright woolen yarn 

I'd hung on our back-yard palings. 
"Help yourselves," I said to the birds that came, 

"Take all you want from those railings." 
And right glad am I that I helped the birds 

To build their nests all the better ; 
In songs they have paid me many times o'er, 

And always I'll be their debtor. 
When cold winds blow and seeds are all gone 

Hang out some meat scraps and suet : 
It may keep from starving some little bird ; 

'Twill make you happy to do it. 
But I must be off to hunt my sheep. 

And I don't know where to find 'em, 
For I fear they'll stray by some lonely way 

With nobody there to mind 'em. (Retires.) 

(Indian and Schoolboy come fonvard.) 
Indian (peering about in every direction as though searching 
for something, then shaking his head despairingly). Gone are the 
noble forests of my forefathers! Gone are the swiftly-flowing 
rivers. Under the white man's reign they have disappeared. The 
giant monarchs of the woods are no longer to be found. Where 
are they ? Slain ! slain ! Never again will their like glorify the 
land, for the soil to produce them also is gone. They were so 
plentiful, so luxuriant in growth, that the white man thought 
they would last forever. He burned and destroyed the priceless 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 29 

heritage of past centuries. Little he dreamed that he was impov- 
erishing his children and his children's children! The majestic 
streams have shrunken away to sluggish rivulets, with washed- 
out, treeless banks. Their bright waters are polluted and the fish 
die in their poisoned depths. The noble Ohio [substitute name of 
any large river of locality] in its proud splendor was the joy of 
my people. Look what it is to-day. In times of drought on its 
stony bed schoolboys play ball, where formerly the fleets of com- 
merce were carried on its broad bosom. Alas ! how has its glory 
departed! Alas! that this crime should have been committed 
against this beautiful land! 

Schoolboy. The red man has spoken the truth. We have 
done a great wrong to ourselves and to those who will come after 
us by wasting our forests that held the rainfall in its roots and 
made our fields fertile. But, hearken ! Now we are pledged to 
save, not to destroy. The United States Government is making 
laws to conserve our streams, our forests, and our coal. A House 
of Governors has been created to look after these natural re- 
sources. Each state will have its own forest reserve. Laws will 
be enacted that no tree shall be cut down unless another is 
planted, the mountainsides will be reforested to hold the water, 
that we shall not suffer from devastating floods. The Govern- 
ment will put a stop to the destruction of trees on the Appalachian 
Mountain chain. The channels of the great waterways will be 
deepened. The matter of a vast canal connecting the Great Lakes 
with the rivers flowing to the Gulf of Mexico is being agitated. 
A notable conference called the North American Conservation 
Conference, has been held and was attended by delegates from 
Canada, Newfoundland, and Mexico who came to consider with 
the United States how best to conserve the water supply, the 
woods, the minerals, and other resources of this continent for the 
welfare of all the nations concerned, and to put a stop to the 
pollution of all lakes, rivers and streams throughout North Amer- 
ica. In time there will be a world conference in which all nations 
will take part. 

Indian. It is well. See to it that the work is done soon to 
stop the desolation sure to come to your land. (They retire.) 



30 THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 

(Ten pupils come forward and with the Lady of the Green 

Scarf give the Bird Biography, each pupil answering 

in turn.) 

Lady. What bird is our emblem? 
Pupil. "I," said the eagle, 

"In strength I am regal ; 

"I'm America's emblem." 

Lady. Who sings on the wing? 
Pupil. "I," said the skylark; 

"From dawn until dark 

"I sing on the wing." 

Lady. Whose feathers are downy? 
Pupil. "Mine," said the goose; 

"They're put to good use. 

"My feathers are downy." 

Lady. Who builds a hang-nest? 
Pupil. "I," said the oriole ; 

"In shape like a bowl 

"I build my hang-nest." 

Lady. What bird is handsome? 
Pupil. "I," said the jay ; 

"With plumes blue and gray, 

"I'm very handsome." 

Lady. Who's pet of the household ? 
Pupil. "I," said canary, 

"A bright yellow fairy ; 

"I'm pet of the household." 

Lady. Who's Poetry's bird? 
Pupil. "I," said the dove, 

"For I coo of love; 

"I'm Poetry's bird." 

Lady. Who loves to chatter? 
Pupil. "I," said the blackbird; 

"My harsh voice is heard; 

"I love to chatter." 

Lady. Whose legs are long? 
Pupil. "Mine," said the crane; 

"I've more legs than brain; 

"My legs are long." 



THE LADY OF THE GREEN SCARF 31 

Lady. Who whistles "Bob White"? 
Pupil. "I," said the quail ; 

"Across wood and dale 

"I whistle 'Bob White.' " (Pupils retire.) 

Lady. Very good. I wish there were some one to tell us of 
the bird that has but two toes ; or the Lory with parrot-like nose ; 
or the eiderduck, stripping her breast of feathers to line her soft 
nest ; or the bird with a bag under his beak that makes him look 
like a freak; or that bird perched over the door that croaked 
"Never more ! Never more !" These and many other feathered 
friends form an interesting study in bird biography. — But now 
let us all march and sing our forest rally song. (Entire School 
forms in line.) 

Entire School (to tune of "Marching through Georgia): 

Blest by Nature, our loved land is rich in flowing streams ; 
They're our health and they're our wealth ; of them our com- 
merce dreams. 
From pollution we must keep them, clear as sunset beams, 
As we go saving the forests. 

(Chorus, sung marching.) 

Come on ! come on ! And join our ranks to-day ! 
Come on ! come on ! There's danger in delay ! 
No one who loves his country will lag behind nor stay, 
As we go saving the forests. 

(School stands.) 

Birds will never come to nest where trees are never found ; 
Crops will fail where waters fail to filter through the ground ; 
All these gifts we must preserve to make them more abound, 
As we go saving the forests. 

(Chorus, "Come on! come on!" etc., sung marching.) 

(School stands.) 

Presidents and Lawmakers will know what's right and wrong; 
On the conservation question they're out good and strong ; 
To their timely efforts we now dedicate this song, 
As we go saving the forests. 

(Chorus, "Come on! come on!" etc. School marches out, 

singing.) 



AS WE GO SAVING THE FORESTS 

Arrangement:— Marching Through Georgia, used by permission of 
McKinley Music Co. 



±. 



^^=^ 



S 



^ 



^ 



f 



^ 



1. Blest by na-ture, our loved land is rich in flow - ing streams ; 

2. Birds will nev-er come to nest where trees are nev - er found; 

3. Pres - i- dents and law-ma-kerswellknowwhat'srightandwrong; 



i 



1=^ 



"Sr 



4- 



IS 



^S 



St 



# 



# 



^ 



i 



S 



f- — b* — ^-^ 



^g^^ 



The}''re our health, and they're our wealth, of them our commerce dreams; 
Crops will fail where wa-ters fail to fil - ter thro' the ground; 
On the con -ser-va-tion ques-tion they're out good and strong ; 



g~lJ^=^^ ^ 



m 



^ 



^ 



6^ 



i 



From pol - lu - tion we must keep them, pure as sun - set beams. 
All these gifts we must pre-serve to make them more a - bound. 
To their time - ly ef - forts we now ded - i - cate this song, 



^ 



.m. 

m 



^^ 



^m 



i£ 



As 
As 

As 



we 
we 
we 



go 
go 
go 



sav 

sav 
sav 



mg 
ing 
ing 



SE 



m 



^ 



the 
the 
the 



^^ 



for 
for 
for 



w 



m 



ests. 
ests. 
ests. 



-a 



^ 



AS WE GO SAVING THE FORESTS 



Chorus: 



i^=^=t^ 






t±=-A 



^m 



Come on! Come on! and join our ranks to - day, Come 

^ f t 



gv - \.i\ X^^ 




i 



fc=S: 



3^ 



f-T- 



V li V 



^ 



1 L 



^ 



on! Come on! There's dan - ger in de - lay, 



^=^ 



■ - u J u ej ^-a=E 



4: 



^ 



r 



i 



fr — ^ 



^is 



^^WfT=^ - 



No one who loves his coun -try will lag be - hind nor stay. 



^ 



» » f ? ^ fr t t t| 



=^^^ 



#-: # #■ 



i 



=it: 



:±z^ 



-^ ' e J 



I 



As we go sav - ing the for - ests. Come for - ests. 



^ '' M' J J l ' i. Qj 



^ 



I 



WE ARE SYLVAN SOLDIERS 



SoNQ AND March 



i ^Miiii l W 



^g^ 



=|: 



W 



r r \ iiii 



r 

We are sylvan soldiers, Marching thro' the land; Friends to stream and forest. 



S 



nrnrirf n ^ 



S: 



t 



k^'^i \ i j ri 



j=^=jt 



We now take our stand, To pro-tect the wood-land Grown on mountain soil. 



knff i : i F?f 



:£ 



:&. 



i 



^ 



^h^j L^ wm:b#j-^t^ 



There to hold the rain To bless the farmers' toil. We are syl-van sol - diers, 



h' f f f rfF fi fCr 



-i — ^ 



^ 



^^ 



f jij^% i ^-^+ff-±^;fg 



Marching thro' the land; Friends to stream and forest, We now take our stand. 



m 



^ r M i r r r r ^^^ 



i 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 



002 816 81 



OA 



hSb'v 



>tf\ 



U.J 



m 




